Words | phrases choice missing from main search page

If I go to the main search page (http://www.librarything.com/search.php), there is no possibility to change the search from "words" to "phrases". That does not appear until after I do the search. That means that if I want to search for a specific phrase, I have to first search for the words, and only then can I search for the phrase. This is unnecessary additional work.

You can actually search for a phrase from it by putting double quotes around it. Not sure if there's any difference in the results from this and by clicking on a phrase search.

Also, you don't have to search for anything before going to the search page and clicking phrase. Just click the magnifying glass, then click phrase, then type in your search phrase.

Not sure what else you could really do other than cram more UI elements into the tiny box.

ETA: Don't want to waste other people's time with this if they want to cut to the chase. I misread lilithcat's original post to mean the search in the upper-right, not the search.php page itself.

Also, you don't have to search for anything before going to the search page and clicking phrase. Just click the magnifying glass, then click phrase, then type in your search phrase.

I think you misunderstand. I am talking about starting the search from the search page.

When I am on that page, I have no option to click "phrase". Clicking the magnifying glass changes nothing on the page. I have to enter the phrase, do a search and only then does the "words | phrase" option appear.

Not sure what else you could really do other than cram more UI elements into the tiny box.

I have no idea what this means.

But I do not see why it would be so difficult to have the "words | phrase" option under the box on the main search page just as it is on the results page.

3> Ah, no, good point. Sorry for the confusion. I had forgotten that the words|phrase links only appears AFTER the search. As such I completely misread. Just skip that part my ramblings.

But I do not see why it would be so difficult to have the "words | phrase" option under the box on the main search page just as it is on the results page.

It wouldn't be difficult at all. I'm just referring back to the debate that went on when having the word "Search" appear as the background text. It being easy had nothing to do with it.

ETA: Part of my confusion is also that I think of the box in the upper-right as the "main" search rather than the page it takes you to. I completely understand the opposite view, though.

Closed. Option removed.

What? So does it do a word or phrase (I thought you were thinking about changing it to exact match/partial match) now? Don't we still need both for different types of searches?

Is it just that you can do an exact match now simply by surrounding in double quotes?

Right. It works like Google and everything else now. Search for exactness by enclosing in quotes. (Note: THat's all it was doing before. It just hid the fact that's what it was doing.)